


too little too late

by BlackCats



Category: Dangan Ronpa, Dangan Ronpa: Another Episode
Genre: Drabble, F/M, Introspection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-12
Updated: 2014-10-12
Packaged: 2018-02-20 22:54:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2446139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackCats/pseuds/BlackCats
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She wanted to love him.<br/>(Monaka, Shingetsu, and not quite enough.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	too little too late

There’s the pleasant smell of cookies in the air, which contradicts the sheer devastation inflicting the world outside.

The world is coming apart at the seams, spewing blood into the ground and smoke into the air. Emergency sirens have long since been silenced—there’s no one left to answer. Children run through the streets, Monokuma’s frozen smile stitched upon their masks, the bear’s laughter bubbling up from their throats.

They run themselves ragged. The adults they prance upon become more battered still.

Monaka turns away from the display, her eyes traveling to the side. There’s Shingetsu, faithful Shingetsu, engrossed in his tasks. The tablet he’s flicking through so swiftly and so deftly details the going-ons in the city; he doesn’t rest until he’s satisfied with his work.

He’s never satisfied unless she says he should be.

She puts her chin on her hand, watching him. He’s cute. Shingetsu always has been. A little peculiar (God knows his fashion sense leaves much to be desired) but dependable, and smart. Able to shoulder a tremendous amount of pressure before cracking. Sensible. He’s put in more effort than Kotoko, Jataro, and Masaru combined. His results? Impressive.

Monaka stares at him until he notices.

And when he does, he turns bright red, scarcely meeting her eyes before looking away again.

She waits to feel something. But she doesn’t.

She smiles anyway.

“Why don’t you take a break, Shingetsu-kun?” Monaka says, maneuvering her chair closer to him. He clears his throat in an exaggerated fashion, calming down a little as he does so.

“Ah…Sorry…I still have something to look into.”

She giggles, placing petite fingers on the device, gently urging him to set it down on the nearby cabinet. Her requests are never _just_ requests, and she’s annoyed for a moment because he should certainly know that by now.

He complies immediately, though reluctantly, folding his arms instead. He has trouble holding eye-contact. Monaka thinks it’s precious, but not like she wants, and she turns her head away with a frown.

“M-Monaka-chan? Is something the matter? Sorry, I’m taking a break just like you said…!”

“No, no. Monaka’s not mad about that.”

“So you _are_ mad,” he states, his calm tone edged with slight unease.

She puts on her cutest pout. “Monaka is _very_ upset.”

“Well, what’s wrong? D-Don’t be upset. Is something not going according to plan? Just tell me and I’ll fix it right away!”

Monaka closes her eyes as he stammers out weak reassurances. She’s feeling something, but again, it’s not what she wants, and that just makes her even more annoyed.

She turns back to him, playful humor in her voice, her smile. “Monaka-chan’s just teasing, Shingetsu-kun! Monaka thinks you’re always so _serious_ …”

There’s palpable relief from him (and an apology, too) as she wheels away. She sees him following her hesitantly from the edges of her vision; Monaka waves for him to come right up to her side. He’s avoiding meeting her gaze and there’s still some slight red in his face—it’s...something. It makes her feel an awful lot of _something_ but it’s _not what she wants it to be_.

(There’s Despair eating away at the cavity in her chest. Just like Junko said it would. It hurts, but God, _she loves it_.)

They stop beside that innocent plate of cookies. It’s something Monaka bakes from time to time because it amuses her, and it makes the others like her, which is ten times more important to her goals. If they like her, they're easier to control.

And if they _love_ her…

She beams at Shingetsu, picking up a cookie, taking a luxurious bite before tapping him on the lips with it—she has her most mischievous grin on, and he’s blushing so very _hard_. 

It's... _something._ It's a lot of  _something_.

But not enough.

Monaka’s laughter soon trails off and she regards him silently. His shoulders are hunched and his ears are in danger of blowing steam; Shingetsu looks at her with wariness, and that’s Despairing, but oh—

He looks at her with love, and it’s what she’s always wanted.

But it’s too little too late. She doesn’t feel anything anymore. There’s nothing she can give him but her endless Despair, but she doesn’t think he even wants _that_ , and that makes her feel…

Betrayed.

Monaka brushes off his concern about her silence and lets him go back to work, because he’s always so impossible to talk with if his mind is focused elsewhere. She’ll leave him be for now. She looks over at the displays, at the Monokumas rampaging through the streets, and she lets out a little sigh that draws his curious eyes back to her. 

Love’s never been enough, anyway.


End file.
